The subject matter herein relates generally to electrical connector assemblies for transmitting power to an electrical system.
In some known connector assemblies, a pair of power connectors are mounted to a circuit board and positioned near each other with a space between the power connectors. The power connectors may face a common direction such that the power connectors are configured to receive mating connectors from the same insertion direction. Each of the power connectors includes an anode contact and a cathode contact. The power connectors can be electrically interconnected to each other and to the circuit board. For example, first and second power connectors can be electrically interconnected through wires such that power from the first power connector can be delivered through the second power connector and vice versa. During operation, either of the first or second power connectors can be energized or both of the first and second power connectors can be energized. The first and second power connectors are mechanically coupled to one another with a bridge element that extends across a space located between the two power connectors.
However, the above connector assembly can have limited capabilities. For example, the bridge element extending between the two power connectors can limit the size of other connectors or components that are desired to be positioned between the two power connectors. Furthermore, the wires are hand soldered to the circuit board and power connectors, which can lead to higher costs of manufacturing. In addition, the above connector assemblies use braided cable wires, which can transmit only limited amounts of current.
Accordingly, there is a need for electrical connector assemblies having multiple interconnected power connectors that permit the placement of components between the power connectors, that are capable of delivering higher levels of current than the above connector assembly, and/or that are capable of electrically connecting the conductors to the circuit board or connectors without soldering by hand.